free travel route planner

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Wanderlog - Travel Planner 4+

Itinerary & road trip guide, travel and vacation planner app llc, designed for ipad.

• #70 in Travel
• 4.9 • 15.8K Ratings
• Offers In-App Purchases

Screenshots

Description.

Wanderlog is a free travel app (with an optional Pro subscription) for planning every kind of trip, including road trips and group travel: create a trip itinerary, budget costs, organize flight and hotel reservations, view places to visit on a map, and collaborate with friends. With Pro, you can also export your trip to Google Maps and link your Gmail account. After your trip, share a travel guide to inspire other travelers. - See flights, hotels, and attractions in one place (like TripIt and Tripcase) - View plans on a travel map & map your route (like Roadtrippers) - Rearrange the order of places easily by drag-and-drop - Planning a road trip? Add unlimited stops for free, optimize your route, view times & distances between places, and export places to Google Maps - Planning group travel? Invite friends and collaborate in real-time just (like Google Docs) - Automatically import reservations by forwarding emails or connecting your Gmail - Add things to do from top guides with 1 click (like Tripadvisor and Google Trips/Google Travel) - Access your trip plans offline - Add notes and links to your stops - Have your trip plans automatically sync across devices - Set budget, track expenses, and split bills with a group ------- SEE IT ON A MAP Every time you add a place to visit, it’s immediately pinned on your Google Maps-based travel map. No need to pull up different travel apps and websites to organize plans and see them on a map - you can do it all in the Wanderlog trip planner app! Plus, if you’re visiting points in order, lines will connect the different pins on the map so you can see your route (perfect for road trips!). You can also export all your places to Google Maps too. STORE PLANS OFFLINE All your plans are automatically stored offline on the Wanderlog travel planner app - especially helpful during a road trip with poor signal and international travel. GET ON THE ROAD Looking for a road trip planner? Travelers can plan their trips and stops with Wanderlog. See your route on a map, or try our route optimizer to automatically rearrange and plan your route to save travel time. See estimated times & distance traveled between places to make sure it all fits, and total time and distance traveled for a given day to make sure you’re not driving too long. Plus, you can add unlimited stops along your road trip for free. COLLABORATE WITH FRIENDS For group travel planning, add your tripmates with their email address or by sharing a link to the itinerary. Like for Google Docs, everyone can collaborate in real-time. Set permissions and choose whether people can edit or just view your travel plans. STAY ORGANIZED Access flights, hotels, and attractions in one app. Forward flight and hotel confirmation emails to import them directly into your trip plan, or connect your Gmail to automatically add them. Prefer to keep high-level plans? Make generic lists like ‘Things to do’ and ‘Restaurants’ you want to eat at. Traveling on a tight schedule and want to create a detailed itinerary? Organize your day by adding start (and end) times, perfect for keeping track of tickets and reservations. GET INSPIRATION & INFORMATION For each place, see key info like a description and picture of the place, average user ratings with links to reviews, opening hours, address, website, and phone number. Stay inspired by exploring top travel guides from the web that feature viewpoints, attractions, and restaurants, and from lists from Google Trips and Google Travel, as well as by other Wanderlog users, and add things to do from those guides to your trip plan with 1 click. CONTROL YOUR SPENDING Set a budget for yourself or a group. Take control of your spending and keep track of all expenses. For a group trip, split a bill with other people and easily calculate the cost. Keep a record of who paid for what, how much everyone owes, and settle debts between tripmates. Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Version 2.126

Wanderlog's available in more languages! We're launching Chinese, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese, and Korean support. We fixed a bug that prevented sharing with emails and a crash that happens when opening malformed PDFs.

Ratings and Reviews

15.8K Ratings

I still had a spreadsheet…

I’m old school…too young to be so, but I’ve been in the backwoods enough to know not to trust your phone. I know there is an offline option, but the ONLY (and I mean this…the app is amazing) thing I would add is to have it downloadable and printable. Albeit, I’m only proficient and not expert as a user so I may have missed it, but that would make this perfect. The app picked up my reservations and costs by linking to my email and helped me plan out the most efficient way to make my trip. I did use Mapquest, too, because that app is easier to do the mapping a round trip adventure without having to manually change the order of things in the app (ok, so maybe one more thing I’d add…get Mapquest to link to this), so I printed that out, but I did wish I didn’t also have to put activities and costs in a Google sheets. Because we were headed into extremely rural parts of Appalachia, I knew not to trust internet, battery life, or cell signal, but also knew I could possibly need information so I printed items out. If this app had that feature I’d use it solely to plan my trips- even day trips. As it was, this was an essential tool in planning an 8 day, 2000 mile, road trip. It exposed me to museums I didn’t know existed and taught me about new possible locations. I wish there were even more guides! I can write the Appalachia and Shenandoah one now :)

Perfect for an avid traveler

I really like this app a lot! I don’t normally leave reviews too often but this one I felt pretty compelled believer review. I’m a pretty avid traveler, and I would say that I plan at least three trips a year, one of which going out of the country. This app has been so useful in planning my trip to Costa Rica. I like that you’re able to plug-in all of your reservations for ,lodging and transportation, flight info, etc. in this app. I also like that you’re able to share it with others and it really beats making a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet LOL I will say that the only feature that’s a little wonky is the plugging in of hotels using the forwarding email feature. I’ve had to go back and manually input my info. Not a big deal since I was used to doing that myself for so long. I wish there was a spot where you could plug in your reservation information for your excursions. Maybe I am totally missing that in the app, but it would be a nice feature if it is not currently available. I really hope this app continues to grow and improve because I am a big fan! I also really like the recommendations feature for wherever you’re going. You can search for highly rated activities and things that people normally do in that area and it makes trip planning easier. Great job with this app!

It’s that person on your trip with the plan, without all the anxiety

Or guilt. Look, when you go on a trip, you ought to have even sort of a rough plan. Sometimes you don’t. Sometimes you sit in your high dollar Air BnB in your underwear wishing you had something to do besides get takeout and stream Into the Spiderverse again. Don’t act like you haven’t done this. We see everything. The point here is that if you took that trip by yourself to avoid all the griping from the person you go on trips with who actually has their act together, now there is a quieter less guilt and anxiety inducing version. Wanderlog. Yep, you will love it or you are wrong. And you’re allowed to be wrong, skeptical type A person who is afraid of being replaced. Don’t worry, it makes you more tolerable. It will take even your annotated tape flagged agenda book to a level of organizations so fine and detailed that even you will be able to have fun. Subsequently, if incidentally, allowing whomever you go with to also have fun. The fun stuff is there. All the less fun stuff is there. You can casually put it in some kind of order. Or not. It is actually as organized as you wanna be. You need this if you’re not that person and if you are that person you will wonder how you lived without it. And so will anyone else who still wants travel with you.

App Privacy

The developer, Travel and Vacation Planner App LLC , indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .

Data Linked to You

The following data may be collected and linked to your identity:

• Contact Info
• User Content
• Identifiers
• Diagnostics

Data Not Linked to You

The following data may be collected but it is not linked to your identity:

Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More

Information

• Wanderlog Pro: Annual Plan $49.99
• Wanderlog Pro: Annual Plan $39.99
• Wanderlog Pro: Monthly Plan $16.99
• Wanderlog Pro: Monthly Plan $5.99
• Wanderlog Pro: Annual Plan $59.99
• Wanderlog Pro: Annual Plan $79.99
• Wanderlog Pro: Monthly Plan $13.99
• App Support
• Privacy Policy

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Personalized Trip Planning Plan your perfect trip based on your preferences and budget

Custom Itineraries for you Our intuitive itineraries curated just for you by the smart algorithms

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Create custom day trips, weekend getaways, and cross country adventures worldwide

Powerful features for planning your epic road trips (and the shorter adventures in between)

Unlimited stops.

Add unlimited stops and sub-stops. Combine your own stops with our pre-planned routes and recommended places of interest.

Smart Scheduling

By the minute, hour, or overnight, set preferences for each stop. Export your trip to your own Calendar.

Set Vehicle Type

Car, RV, camper trailer, truck, motorcycle, pulling a boat? Get a realistic estimate of driving time. Adjust travel speed by percentages for each unique situation.

Divide Trips Into Days

Divide your trips into manageable driving days based on your custom settings by time or distance. And of course you can customize each day differently.

Route Preferences

Configure route preferences such as avoiding highways or tolls for each day or any segment of your trip.

Use Any Device

Plan trips from your desktop computer, iPad, Android tablet, and mobile phone with the same easy-to-use interface. No app to download or software to install.

Automated To Do List guides you through the road trip planning process.

Manage Your Budget

Track expenditures before you go and along the way. See a summary of expenses for entrance fees, activities, restaurants, and lodging, etc.

Gas Calculator

See the estimated fuel cost for your vehicle type.

EV Charging

Find EV charging stations along your route. Get reminders to recharge. Use Charging Ranges to display icons on the map where your vehicle will require recharging.

Export Options

We support Google Earth (KML), Garmin Communicator, BaseCamp and MapSource (GPX), Co-Pilot Live (TRP), Microsoft Streets and Trips, TomTom itineraries (ITN), TomTom Places of Interest (OV2), Comma Separated Files (CSV), and Tab Separated Files (TSV).

Directions on paper come in handy. Print your road trip with turn-by-turn maps and full directions, divided into your day-by-day itinerary.

Is This Really Free?

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Why Do I Need An Account?

A free account is only required for the Road Trip Planner, enabling you to create, edit, and save your trips. Your account is secure. We never share your information.

Do I Need to Download An App or Install Software?

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Plots out your entire trip on a map

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Planning a road trip?

Get advice from people who have done the same trip.

The Trippy road trip planner automatically calculates the optimal itinerary including stops recommended by Trippy members, favorite restaurants and hotels, local attractions and things to do based on what people who live in the area have suggested, and more.

Once you have a quick trip planned, you can customize every detail, adding or removing stops, or changing what time you leave in the morning or how long you stay at each stop. Then you can save your custom trip and share it with friends and family.

Let us know if you have requests for more features you'd like to see in the trip planner!

Plan Your Perfect Trip!

Planapple helps you create , organize , access and share all your vacation plans, what's planapple (watch this short video & see).

How Planapple Simplifies Travel Planning

Organize ideas.

Collect your vacation ideas in an online trip notebook, and keep everything organized in one place.

That's where Planapple comes in. A web travel binder of sorts, Planapple helps you collect your ideas, possibilities, and plans — and saves them all in one place, organized and manageable.

Planapple even creates a custom map tailored to your plans, so you can actually see which hotel is closest to your daily destinations!

Plan Together

Discuss and decide your ideal itinerary with your tripmates.

Planapple eliminates the communication challenges and email negotiations, making group planning far simpler.

And, as your burgeoning itinerary comes together, it's all captured in your Planapple binder for you and your tripmates to see, so no one misses out on one juicy detail.

Carry Your Plans

Carry your plans on your mobile device —  or access them anywhere.

Planapple's mobile app puts your plans right in your pocket. Access your entire trip: itinerary, bookmarks, addresses, phone numbers, emails, even discussions with your co-travelers. (And Planapple can download it all to your phone before you go, avoiding scary international data charges.)

And, if you're a paper person, you can print your plans just as easily and take them anywhere you go. We get it.

Share With Friends

Create recommendations to share on Pinterest and Facebook.

Planapple makes it easy to share what you did, where you went, and what you liked (or didn't!). Offer up your entire itinerary or just a few highlights — either way your friends will marvel at your travel-planning prowess. After all, what good is finding something wonderful if you can't scream it from the tippy top of the World Wide Web?

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The Best Free Driving Directions and Map Websites and Apps

Google Maps

Aaa driving directions, rand mcnally online driving directions.

With the near-ubiquity of GPS systems built into cars and smartphones, apps have overtaken pesky, hard-to-fold paper maps and even printable online driving directions as travelers' go-to tool for finding their way on the road. Still, there are times when it makes sense to have a mapping backup in case of spotty cellphone reception or even to plot your own scenic route. Since most driving directions websites and apps are free, you can afford to double up. Choose wisely with this look at the best options.

The accuracy of Google's detailed road maps is unparalleled, which is helpful if you'd like to plot a scenic route rather than driving on interstate highways or avoid toll routes (where possible). This is easily the best free online driving directions tool, thanks to Google's massive project to map public roads worldwide.

On the app or website, click "Street View" for street-level visuals that can help you effectively pinpoint landmarks and locations. You can plot a route from Point A to Point B, and Google will tell you the best driving route, public transit options, flight times, and in some cases, walking distance. 

The Google Maps app lets you plan and recalibrate your route in real-time and gives step-by-step voice directions, particularly useful when you're driving and it's not safe to glance at a map every few minutes.

The pre-installed driving directions app for iOS phones, Apple Maps got off to a shaky start when it was launched in 2012. Since then, the company has made significant upgrades to the app and its interface, connecting it with iPhone's personal assistant Siri for seamless directions. Where Waze is a little more cartoony and Google Maps has few bells and whistles, the Apple Maps app feels like other Apple products, emphasizing the design and user interface.

Waze has many of the basic features of other mapping tools but adds a social element that is the hallmark of its app. Google bought it in 2013, but Waze had already established itself as the way to crowdsource directions. This includes alerts from other drivers about upcoming traffic, construction, and police speed traps on your route. Users can even connect their Spotify accounts to the Waze app to play perfect driving music for a trip. 

On the Internet since 1996, MapQuest has been surpassed in recent years by competitors like Google Maps and Apple Maps. MapQuest has long had issues with the accuracy of its directions, but recent iterations of its driving directions website are more on target. 

MapQuest's most handy features include assessing current traffic conditions and estimated fuel costs based on current prices. While MapQuest has ceded its spot at the top of the list of map providers, its app and online driving directions are free, and it's a good backup option to your smartphone's built-in navigation.

The American Automobile Association (better known as AAA) offers its TripTik Travel Planner service free online ​. It allows you to print a paper version like its old-style TripTik maps. Sometimes the directions generated can be somewhat convoluted, though, so while they'll get you there, it might not be via the easiest route. With one click, though, you can choose a scenic route, which makes this tool worth trying if you want to enjoy the journey as much as the destination.

Be forewarned: The AAA website has this annoying feature of demanding to know your zip code before it will allow you to access content, which is a frustrating extra step.

Rand McNally's map-making history dates back to 1856, but the company was a bit slow to the dance and didn't offer free driving directions online until 1999.

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Be advised that their accuracy is a little buggier than some other maps and directions sites. 

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The most optimal.

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Get Inspired

Extract valuable travel insights from Instagram reels and TikToks, explore the mentioned explore-sights, and effortlessly include them in your own adventure with Trip Planner AI.

TRIP PLANNER AI

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Shape your journey by freely adding, editing, or deleting activities from your itinerary.

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Dont take our word for it

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Trip Planner AI saves time and stress by aiding travel planning, relieving indecision or uncertainty.

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I love traveling but hate planning. This app quickly organizes trip agendas, reducing decision fatigue.

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7 Free Travel Planning AI and ChatGPT Apps to Get an Instant Itinerary

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• Layla, Wonderplan, and PLAN by ixigo are AI travel planning apps with customizable itineraries.
• iplan.ai offers detailed itineraries for popular tourist cities based on interests and budget.
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You can tell a travel agent your preferred dates, the place you want to visit, and your budget, and expect a full itinerary of what to do there based on your preferences. But can AI do the same job?

These free travel planning apps use AI and machine-learning tools like ChatGPT to prepare an itinerary for you in a few seconds, and we took them for a spin.

Layla describes itself as an AI trip planner, meaning you can use it to decide your vacation destination, create itineraries, and find suitable hotels and flights.

If you are uncertain about your destination or would like suggestions, you can ask Layla for advice regarding your trip. Otherwise, enter your destination and ask Layla to create your itinerary. Within a few seconds, you'll get a detailed plan for your trip.

As Layla is a chatbot, you can enter a prompt to ask it to change your itinerary. For instance, ask it to focus more on outdoor activities or include local restaurants. If you're unsatisfied with the activities planned on any particular day, you can give instructions and ask Layla to regenerate that part only.

Once you've perfected your itinerary, you can share it with your friends via a URL or add it to your bucket list.

2. Wonderplan

Wonderplan is a wonderful AI tool for planning your trip. To create your itinerary, Wonderplan first asks you to enter your destination country and city, your budget, the number of days you'll be staying, and your interests.

It then creates a travel plan within a few minutes, displaying various places to visit, their descriptions, and the time usually spent at each location. Although Wonderplan doesn't show the trip map, it does provide a link to Google Maps for each place.

It also displays different types of accommodation available (like Airbnb, hotel, or hostel) and their respective costs. Similarly, there are details about transportation, food, and activities. This way, you can estimate the potential cost of your trip.

In addition to your itinerary, Wonderplan also shows essential information about the country you're visiting. These include the currency conversion rate, electricity plug type, languages spoken, weather, and popular conveyances.

3. PLAN by ixigo

PLAN by ixigo starts by asking you about your dream destination. Then, it provides an option to describe the type of experience you want to have. This is just like a ChatGPT prompt, so you can enter anything you wish.

For example, you can specify the duration of your stay, your interests, the kinds of activities you're looking for, whether you have a family with you, and so on.

But if you can't think of any prompts, PLAN by ixigo provides a few trip ideas, so you can always select those. PLAN by ixigo then shows a day-wise plan, showing what you can do in the morning, afternoon, and evening.

However, if the suggested itinerary doesn't sound appealing, you can again enter a prompt to edit it.

4. iplan.ai

While iplan.ai doesn't mention which AI or machine-learning algorithm it uses, the results are fantastic enough to gloss over that. The app works beautifully on phones to give you a full itinerary for any one city at a time, depending on how many days you have there.

The app first asks you to name the destination city. As far as we checked, iplan.ai works best for popular tourist cities, not offbeat or obscure travel. Next, note how many days you will be there, and then choose your free time each day—a cool step to ensure a better itinerary if you already have some plans, but not a whole days worth.

Tell iplan.ai if you're traveling solo, as a couple, with family, or with friends, and then choose your interest among topics like history, art and culture, nature, entertainment, shopping, food, sports, relaxing, etc. Finally, choose between an economy, normal, or luxury budget.

After a few minutes, iplan.ai gives you a day-wise itinerary for your trip. It's plotted on a map so you can see all the locations, and each point of interest has a brief description along with estimated travel time.

The app has both free and paid plans. With a paid account, you can share the trip plan with your friends and access it offline. Another limitation of iplan.ai is that you can't get an itinerary for a multi-city trip. For now, you'll need to make a plan for each city you're visiting, one at a time.

Download: iplan.ai for Android | iOS (Free, Paid)

5. Curiosio

The easiest last-minute travel plan is to get into a car and drive. Curiosio specializes in helping you plan an itinerary for a road trip to several major countries on all continents. It doesn't cover every single place, but the existing collection is impressive enough.

Curiosio uses its own AI engine, Ingeenee, which is trained on several crowdsourced travel-based resources, such as Wikivoyage, Wikipedia, Wikidata, Freebase, DBpedia, GeoNames, OSMNames, and OpenStreetMap. Through this dataset, it can chart an itinerary that meets your requirements across various parameters.

You can set options for a round trip or a one-way trip with starting and finishing points. If there are any places you want to visit on the way, add them in. Then set the number of travelers, dates of the journey, what vehicle you're using, total budget, and whether you want to visit places that spark curiosity or are obscure. The AI will usually give you multiple plans and routes for these options.

The itinerary includes a map of your route and a day-wise breakdown of where you'll be going and what you'll be seeing. Each point of interest is clickable to find more information about it. There are easy ways to share your itinerary with co-travelers, print it out, or even export it to Google Maps. Curiosio is one of the best road trip planners for your next adventure .

6. Trip Planner AI

Trip Planner AI plans a perfect trip to your dream destination. Begin creating your itinerary by entering the city you wish to visit and traveling dates. You can add multiple destinations here.

Then, select the kinds of activities you prefer, the number of people, and whether you're traveling with friends or family. Trip Planner AI asks you about your dietary preferences and budget.

As an optional step, you can specify the place where you'll be staying so that it creates an itinerary accordingly. If you haven't decided on your lodging yet, you can explore hotels suggested by Trip Planner AI.

Finally, Trip Planner AI generates a detailed itinerary, a map, and basic information about the city you're visiting. For each destination, it provides the details of the place, expected traveling time, and cost. Though it provides a complete plan for your trip, you can manually add or remove activities from your itinerary. You can also invite your friends to edit the itinerary and download it as a PDF.

7. Vacay Chatbot

Vacay Chatbot is not a dedicated itinerary maker but an AI chatbot that acts like your travel advisor. So, you can ask it to give travel recommendations, compare different destinations, and, of course, create an itinerary. If you've previously used AI chatbots like ChatGPT, you'll find this trip planner easy to use.

Just enter a prompt specifying your destination and trip details and ask Vacay Chatbot to create an itinerary. You can include details like your trip duration, budget, preferences, number of travelers, etc. The more details you provide, the better your itinerary will be.

One of the downsides of using Vacay Chatbot is that it doesn't provide a map for your trip. However, you can use these apps to plot your itinerary on a map .

All these travel planning AI apps urge you not to use the itinerary as-is and only treat it as a template or guide to begin planning your trip. This is because they currently have several limitations, like databases that aren't recently updated or require specific prompts from the user.

A real human travel agent will still give you a more customized itinerary, but it will cost you a few bucks. If you want a free base guide, more basic travel planning apps are a good starting point.

From saving on gas to driving with kids, here's your ultimate road trip planner

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Ina Daly has spent most of her life on the road.

“My dad was a truck driver and that led me to becoming a truck driver,” she said. “What we do in a day, on a daily job would be like a long road trip to most people.”

With nearly 40 years of driving for freight transportation services provider XPO and numerous industry accolades under her belt, including grand champion at this year’s Arizona Truck Driving Championship , Daly is a pro. She’s also a mom and a grandmother who’s happy to share her experiences to make everyone’s road trips better.

“Some of the things I'm telling you are what we truckers tell our family members,” she said. “I've had a lot of accomplishments in my career and going to the National Truck Driving Championships (this month) is a reward, but the bigger reward is being able to share some things … that have the potential to save lives.”

What to do before a long drive

“Make sure that your vehicle’s road trip ready,” Daly said. ”Really pay close attention to your tires, your coolant, your fan belt.”

She notes tire dealers often offer free inspections to ensure tires are properly inflated and undamaged.

AAA spokesperson Aixa Diaz advises getting the whole car serviced before hitting the road.

“If you're a car person and you can, do that yourself at home, by all means,” she said. Otherwise, she recommends getting the oil changed and battery and tires checked professionally. 

To save time and avoid stress, Diaz also suggests filling up on gas the night before leaving and making hotel reservations well in advance, noting that many hotels allow cancellations without penalty up until the day beforehand. 

What do you need before a road trip?

It’s always good to keep an emergency kit with supplies like first aid, a flashlight and extra batteries, and basic tools in the vehicle.

“You want to make sure that if you do have a tire issue, you have the proper tools and jacks in your vehicle to be able to change it,” Daly said. She said warning signals like reflective triangles can also warn other drivers to steer clear in the event of a breakdown.

For road trips, both she and Diaz recommend shelf-stable snacks like protein bars that won’t melt and plenty of water. “Don't think that a bottle or two for everybody is enough,” Daly said. “You've got to have, you know, five or six bottles for everyone.” 

Diaz also recommends wet wipes, blankets during the winter, and any time-sensitive medication or pet food that might be needed in the event of an extended delay.

“These things ideally wouldn't take up too much room in your trunk but they're just good to have in case of an emergency,” Diaz said. “Just think, ‘If I were stuck for a long time, what would keep me comfortable until I was able to (get) help?’”  

A printed map and a general sense of the route can also help in case there GPS hiccups or a phone dies.  AAA’s free TripTik planner can help travelers plot their trips in advance and find rest stops, lodging, food and gas along the way. And its free Gas Cost Calculator can help locate the cheapest average gas prices for drivers when it’s time to refuel.

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What I should know before a road trip?

“Everything can be a distraction in the car – the radio, the kids, etc. But the phone is a big one,” Daly advised. “When you’re driving, that thing should not ever be in your hand.”

More than 3,500 people were killed on U.S. roads in 2021 because of distracted driving, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration . 

Daly also recommends watching out for distracted drivers.

“You can tell a distracted driver by their fluctuating speed,” she warned. “They're drifting in their lane. Their head is looking down instead of focusing on the road. You want to give those people a wide berth.”

How long will a road trip take?

Road trips always take longer than expected because of traffic, construction and other things that arise en route.

Diaz says to expect at least an hour longer than whatever the GPS predicts. Daly recommends leaving at least two hours early.

“You don't want that stressful drive,” Daly said. “You’re hurrying. That lends to bad driving behaviors like tailgating and speeding, which leads to accidents. Don’t put yourself in that situation.”

How many hours a day should you drive on a road trip?

“It just varies so much from person to person, how long they’re comfortable driving,” Diaz said. “We want to err on the side of safety. We want people to be safe on the roads and drive the speed limit and not rush it, but everybody's different.”

Switching out drivers can lighten the load, but no matter who is driving, Daly said, “If you're starting to feel a little, less attentive, maybe a little fatigued, it’s time to take a break.”

What time is best to drive?

“We always recommend, especially during the holidays, leave early in the morning,” Diaz said. “The later you leave in the day, the worse it's going to be because a lot of times during the week … you're going to mix with those commuters on the road.”

“Some people enjoy night driving,” she added. “Once you get to like 8 p.m., 9 p.m. traffic comes down a lot.” 

However, she noted drivers who leave in the evening should watch out for fatigue and plan to drive less than if they started fresh in the morning.

How do you take a good road trip with kids? 

When possible, Daly recommends having a designated passenger to help with kids so the driver can focus on the road.  

Another important thing is to keep seatbelts on the whole way.

“Kids have a tendency to take those off,” Daly said. “Make sure they stay buckled up. I've seen some horrible things out there.”

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What do kids need on a road trip?

Entertainment helps pass the time, but it doesn’t have to be digital. There are all sorts of screen-free road trip games . 

Diaz recommends printing a map or list of sites or cities for kids to watch for along the way.

“You know, yell it out or mark it on your sheet,” she said. “Have some crayons in the car with them so they're following along on the trip, and they feel like they're part of it.”

“Point out historical landmarks and scenery; enjoy nature,” Daly echoed. “That's one of the things that we truck drivers love about our jobs is we get to see the country and nature.”

Stop at points of interest every few hours or simply for everyone to stretch their legs.

And for those times when kids are on screens, make sure to pack car chargers.

What is the best way to save gas?

Don’t speed. 

“Fuel economy peaks at around 50 miles per hour on most cars, and then it drops off as the speeds increase,” Diaz said. “You think, ‘OK, if I just go 70, I'm going to get there faster, and it'll be better,’ but essentially, you're just wasting gas at that point." Fuel economy can be increased by as much as 15% by reducing highway speeds by 5 to 10 miles per hour, she said.

Don’t idle unnecessarily either, like at rest stops.

“Your car engine consumes about a quarter to a half a gallon of fuel per hour while it's idling,” she said. “But a warm engine only takes about 10 seconds’ worth of fuel to restart, so if it's safe to do so, just shut off your engine.”

Story continues below.

What happens if my tire blows out?

“When you blow a tire, kaboom, it freaks you out. Do not panic,” Daly said. “Don't slow down abruptly or brake hard or jerk the wheel because that will cause you to lose control and have an accident.”

“Just focus on steering,” she added. “Slow very gradually, off to the side of the road in a safe area, and you won’t have any issue from your blown tire.”

How do you drive around semitrucks?

“Be aware of our needs and limitations,” Daly said. “You know we’re big. We need a lot of space around us. We have big blind spots. … If you can’t see the truck driver’s face in the mirrors of the truck, the truck driver can’t see you.”

She advised against passing on the right. 

“If you have to pass quickly, don’t linger over there. We see people driving over there for the shade (and it) puts us in a very dangerous situation,” she said. “And don’t cut in front of us and then hit your breaks. People don’t like to follow a truck because they can’t see around us, so they pass us and then cut in front of us.”

“It takes away that safety cushion we leave in front of us,” she added. “When you see all that space in front of a truck, that's not for your convenience so that you can pass us and cut into it. That’s for our safety and yours.”

By the same token, she advised fellow drivers to leave plenty of space in front of their own vehicles, so they have enough room to stop quickly in an emergency. If another driver cuts into that space, she suggested, “Take a break. Slow down again. Recreate that space. Bite your tongue and think pure thoughts.”

That last tip may not be so easy.

What has been your best or worst road trip experience?

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Google Unveils Gemini Updates, Revolutionizing The Future Of Stress-Free Travel Planning

Gemini will craft your entire vacation itinerary in the blink of an eye, ending the long hours spent researching destinations and flights.

Faith Katunga • May 16, 2024

Gemini, Google’s latest marvel, is poised to revolutionize travel planning . Announced at the  Google I/O 2024  developer conference, Gemini is not just another chatbot. It’s an AI-powered assistant designed to craft your entire vacation itinerary in the blink of an eye. Gemini promises an end to the long hours spent researching destinations, flights, and accommodations .

How Gemini Revolutionizes Travel Planning with Advanced AI

Gemini leverages its advanced AI to merge personal information, such as flight and hotel bookings, with publicly available data to churn out a comprehensive, multi-day vacation itinerary in seconds. Sissie Hsiao, Google’s VP and general manager of Gemini, highlighted the tool’s efficiency, stating that what traditionally took hours or weeks can now be accomplished almost instantaneously. 

What sets this AI-powered assistant  apart is its dynamic nature. The AI doesn’t just stop at providing a one-time itinerary. It allows for continuous tweaking and adjustments. Whether you’re looking for a vegan restaurant or kid-friendly activities, Gemini can refine your itinerary based on new prompts. Such efficiency ensures your vacation plan always aligns with your preferences.

Tailoring Your Vacation Itinerary to Your Preferences

One of the most commendable aspects of Gemini is its ability to personalize travel plans. Imagine telling an AI, “My family and I are heading to Miami for Labor Day. My son loves art, and my husband is craving fresh seafood. Can you organize our weekend?” According to Google, all this will be possible. Gemini approaches this challenge by pulling your flight and hotel information from your Gmail. 

Then, it recommends nearby art galleries for your son and the best seafood restaurants for your husband. This level of personalization is unprecedented. This tool’s integration with Google Maps and ability to filter options based on specific prompts, such as dietary restrictions or interests, make it stand out. It’s like having a personal travel agent who knows you and your family’s preferences intimately.

Beyond Trip Planning

But Gemini’s prowess doesn’t end with trip planning. The Google I/O 2024 conference also unveiled Gemini Live , a feature allowing users to have in-depth voice chats with the AI on their smartphones. This feature, expected to launch later this year, will enable Gemini to adapt to users’ speech patterns in real-time and even respond to their surroundings via photos or videos captured by their smartphones’ cameras.

Gemini’s technical innovations are part of Google’s broader vision to make AI more ambient and contextually useful. Beyond planning your next vacation, Gemini can analyze and summarize long documents, suggest recipes based on a photo of a dish, and even help solve complex math problems.

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Google’s Gemini can build an entire vacation itinerary ‘in a matter of seconds’

The ai model will blend personal information, like flights and hotel bookings, with publicly available details to build multiday itineraries in no time..

By Andrew J. Hawkins , transportation editor with 10+ years of experience who covers EVs, public transportation, and aviation. His work has appeared in The New York Daily News and City & State.

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Gemini, Google’s ChatGPT competitor, is getting new trip planning capabilities, the company announced today at its I/O developer conference .

Based on the user’s prompt, the AI model will now research publicly available information as well as tap into specific details like flight times and hotel bookings to work up a custom, multiday vacation itinerary “in a matter of seconds.”

In a briefing with reporters, Google’s VP and general manager of Gemini, Sissie Hsiao, said that manually planning a trip could “take me hours, days, maybe even weeks.” But with the help of Gemini, the process could be nearly instantaneous. And it will be “dynamic,” meaning it can be tweaked and adjusted through prompts and other requests thanks to Gemini’s new trip planning user interface.

• The return of the (robot) travel agent

Google is billing its AI model as offering something more than other chatbots by combining publicly available information with personal details that could only be found in someone’s inbox, for example.

According to the company, an example of a prompt could be something like “My family and I are going to Miami for Labor Day. My son loves art and my husband really wants fresh seafood. Can you pull my flight and hotel info from Gmail and help me plan the weekend?”

Gemini would then build its itinerary based on flight and hotel details included in a user’s email. The model will also tap into Google Maps to find nearby restaurants and cultural destinations and will filter out choices based on specific prompts, like dietary restrictions or things to avoid. Google says the new trip planning capabilities will be coming to Gemini Advanced in the coming months.

Of course, Google isn’t the first company to view trip planning as a fertile ground for AI chatbots. Expedia , Airbnb , Kayak , and others are investing in building out their own AI-powered trip planners in the hopes of steering customers away from search engines like Google.

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Mentor Public Library hosting talk on planning…

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Mentor public library hosting talk on planning a road trip.

Kristina Ambrosia will help plan the perfect road/reading trip during a program at 6:30 p.m. June 6 in Mentor Public Library’s Main Branch, 8215 Mentor Ave.

She will highlight eight bookish spots to stop, including Walden Pond and local haunts for Mark Twain and Stephen King, according to a news release.

Her talk is free to attend, but due to limited space, registration is required. Sign up at www.mentorpl.org or by calling the library at 440-255-8811, ext. 1.

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